CTS 24

Shen Mo barely slept that night. When he got up the next morning, his head was still foggy. He hadn’t touched a drop of alcohol, yet it felt like he had blacked out from drinking too much. Everything about last night was hazy. The grand engagement party for Zhou Yang and Ji An’an, the scarred man who’d shaken him to his core. It all blurred together.

The only thing he could remember clearly was Ji Mingxuan rolling up his sleeves and getting into a fight, and that kiss under the moonlight.

Shen Mo touched his lips. Even after a whole night, they still felt slightly numb.

He woke up late. By the time he got downstairs, the Ji siblings were already in the dining room. Ji An’an was pestering Ji Mingxuan for answers about what happened last night.

“I heard that cousin of Zhou Yang’s used to run with the triads. How could you go up against someone like that? What if he knocked you out with one punch? What if something had happened to you?”

Ji Mingxuan gave in under her relentless questioning and said, “I knew what I was doing. I wasn’t scared. Nothing was going to happen.”

Ji An’an still wasn’t satisfied. She propped her chin in her hand. “People are saying you were drunk last night, but from what I know, your alcohol tolerance isn’t that bad.”

Ji Mingxuan answered casually. “Let them say what they want.”

She clearly wasn’t buying it. Spotting Shen Mo walking in, she immediately turned to him.

“Brother Shen, you were with my brother last night too. Be honest, was he drunk or not?”

Shen Mo knew the truth, but there was no way he could explain it to her. Luckily, Ji Mingxuan stepped in and changed the subject.

“An’an, aren’t you off today?”

“Yeah, it’s the weekend.”

“There’s a car show this afternoon. Go pick out a car, and consider it my engagement gift to you.”

“We already have so many cars in the garage. I could drive any of them. Why buy a new one?”

“It’s not the same,” Ji Mingxuan said with a smile, then looked at Shen Mo. “I’ve got things to handle today. You go with her. Maybe you’ll find something you like too. You’ve got a license, no need to walk to work every day.”

Shen Mo hadn’t expected to be pulled in. Just as he was about to refuse, Ji An’an jumped in.

“Alright, alright. I’ll go with Brother Shen. I’m sure we’ll find the right one. Don’t worry about a thing.”

She threw Ji Mingxuan a playful wink as she said it.

Ji Mingxuan let out a soft chuckle and didn’t say anything more. After finishing breakfast, he left for the office.

Ji An’an went back to her room to change and put on some makeup. Then she clung to Shen Mo and dragged him out of the house. He couldn’t win against her persistence, so he went along.

They had lunch together outside. The whole way there, Ji An’an talked non-stop about cars, asking Shen Mo what brands he liked, which models, what engine specs he preferred. Shen Mo usually didn’t pay attention to any of that. He didn’t have much to say, so he replied, “As long as you like it. I’m just tagging along. I don’t really need to buy anything.”

Ji An’an glanced at him and couldn’t help laughing. “You think my brother’s really giving me an engagement gift? He’s trying to buy a car for you but doesn’t want to say it outright, so he’s using me as an excuse. I bet if you don’t pick one today, tomorrow he’ll throw you a car key anyway. And it’ll be something insanely expensive.”

If it had been before, Shen Mo wouldn’t have believed that for a second. But after everything that happened last night, he wasn’t so sure anymore. He’d always been straightforward, never the type to play games, unlike Ji Mingxuan, who would even go in circles just to buy a car. He couldn’t figure the man out at all.

His mind was full of Ji Mingxuan, and he didn’t expect to run into Zhou Yang at the car show.

Ji An’an was just as surprised. She whispered, “I only sent him a text. I didn’t ask him to come.”

But lovebirds are always happy to meet, so she smiled and said to Zhou Yang, “What brings you here?”

“My fiancée is picking out a car. Of course I had to come.”

“I thought you said you had something to take care of at home. What about your cousin…”

“It’s handled.” Zhou Yang’s expression darkened slightly. His gaze swept across Shen Mo’s face. “He messed with someone he shouldn’t have. Looks like he’s going to suffer for it.”